Category: Appetizers and Sides

Appetizers – COLLECTION

Here is a list of many appetizers that are fairly easy to prepare.  Listed appetizers are from magazines, the Internet, TV shows, with many also created by Grandpa.  Click on the name of an appetizer to see the related photo or the recipe.

An Amuse Bouche is slightly different though than appetizers.

Sprinkle on top or on the plate. Add to taste:

  • Chili flake
  • Fresh oregano
  • Minced garlic
  • Lemon zest
  • Crushed black pepper

Serve with grilled bread or crackers

Here are a few slightly more complex appetizers.

Here are some brief descriptions.  Let your imagination go wild.

  • Antipasta Skewers – Use rosemary twigs for skewers.  Clean twig, leaving a bit on the end.
  • Caprese Cracker – Thin slice of tomato or sun dried tomato, mozzarella and basil leaf.  Garnish with a few drops of EVOO.
  • Chip Scoops – Use a slice of cheese to isolate the chip from the liquid, then add salsa or guacamole.
  • Chicken Nibs – Dip cooked chicken pieces in honey, let drip dry, then roll in sesame seeds.
  • Chocolatey Apricots – Spear apricots on a toothpick, then dip in softened chocolate.  Let cool and set.
  • Donut Holes – Dip in caramel syrup, let drip dry, then roll in crushed praline chips.
  • Endive Scoops – Wash endive leaves, fill with cheese mixture (4 oz goat cheese, 2 oz cream cheese, 1 T parsley, 1 T chives, 1 T lemon zest), top with Proscuitto (crisped in oven at 375º) and top with diced jalapeño (Soaked 5 minutes in hot liquid :: 1/4 C white vinegar, 1/4 C water, 2 tsp sugar, 1 clove garlic)
  • Fried Mozz Stick Wraps – Halve fried mozzarella stick, pair with an avocado slice, then wrap in precooked bacon.
  • Goat Cheese Crostini -Start with a block of goat cheese.  Chop together tarragon, parsley, thyme and mint.  Roll the block into a round log, roll it through the diced greens till much thinner, then wrap and refrigerate.  Put slices on crostini with sundried tomato and a basil chiffonade.
  • Smoked Salmon – Put on cracker and garnish with a bit of fresh ground black pepper.
  • Tomato Dip – Heat EVOO, garlic, tomato, basil and salt.  Blend and serve hot with bread pieces.

The point is:  If it is edible, it can be turned into an appetizer.

 

Grandpa’s Layered Buttermilk Biscuits

Note the layers that you get by folding.

INGREDIENTS

  • 3 C Flour (Spelt or other high-protein)
  • 1 TBL sugar
  • 2 TBL dried milk
  • 1 TBL Baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp Baking soda
  • 1 tsp Salt
    – Sift together dry ingredients
  • 1 egg
  • 12 TBL COLD butter in tabs
  • 1 1/2 C COLD buttermilk
  • 2 TBL melted butter for layers

IMG_6286

For Drop Biscuits, you can just mix the ingredients and drop them into rustic piles.

STEP BY STEP

  1. Pulse the butter with half the dry ingredients in a food processor.
  2. Add the COLD buttermilk and mix briefly using your hands – or better yet a bench scraper – DO NOT OVERMIX or biscuits will be tough.
  3. Roll flat, fold in thirds and repeat a total of FOUR TIMES – Folding, but not kneading.  Brush each layer lightly with butter before folding.
  4. Your final mat should be about 9×12 inches.
  5. Cover and let it rest in the fridge for an hour
  6. Put on floured surface and cut the edges of with a VERY sharp knife.
    – If using a circle cutter DO NOT TWIST the cutter. This will crimp the edge and flatten your biscuits,  Cutting the edge off also affects how well the biscuit layers can rise and separate.
  7. Cut the remaining mat into squares.
  8. Put on baking sheet about 1/2 inch apart.
  9. Brush lightly with melted butter or spray with spray shortening
  10. Bake at 400° for 18-22 minutes – Turn tray around about halfway between cooking
 

Avocado Salsa

CLICK HERE for Avocado Tips and Tricks.

avocado-salsaIngredients:
1/4 Red pepper, fine dice
1/4 Green pepper, fine dice
1/4 Medium Red onion, fine dice
1 green onion, finely sliced
2 plum tomatoes, seeded and finely diced
1 tsp. Garlic, minced
1/2 juice and zest from 1 Lemon
2 TBL Cilantro, coarsely chopped
Pinch of Cayenne pepper
To taste: Ancho Chile powder
To taste: Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 large avocado, finely diced

Directions:
1. Place peppers, onions, tomatoes, garlic, lemon, cilantro, and seasonings in a mixing bowl and mix well. Adjust seasonings.
2. Add avocado, fold in gently and check seasoning again.

TIPS AND TRICKS

  • Halve the avocado. You may have seen people hack the seed with their knife. Be very careful if you do this, because it is very easy to get your finger too.
  • I prefer to slightly squeeze the avocado, and the seed will nearly pop out.
  • You can score the avocado right in the skin, then just scoop it out with a spoon. Here is a video by Expert Village.
  • If you are making a lot of guacamole, after you halve the avocado, press it through a bread drying rack that has metal struts going both directions creating a grid. Just press the avocado through this into a bowl.
  • You can also scrape an avocado against the side of a glass. Here is a video by Crazy Russian Hacker.
  • I am from Ohio. Back east avocados are called mangoes. Bell peppers are also called mangoes. Here in Arizona mangoes are called mangoes, avocados and called avocados and bell peppers are called bell peppers.
  • To ripen an avocado, place it in a bag with a banana.

Biscotti – COLLECTION

Biscotti is essentially twice-baked bread usually served with some kind of toppings on top.

Practically any bread can be baked, sliced, and baked again, then topped to create a tasteful biscotti.

  1. Mix dough recipe to the left and bake for 35 minutes at 300º – for nearly round biscotti, wrap the dough in parchment paper in a roll, then staple the ends of the paper.  Bake as directed.
  2. Cool 10 minutes, then cut into 3/8 inch slices.
  3. Put onto a baking tray and then bake at 300º for 25 minutes.
  4. Be creative with toppings.

FullSizeRender-32

Another good biscotti is using hazelnuts.

  1. Boil 2 C of water, then add 1/4 C baking soda.
  2. Boil 2 C hazelnuts for 3 minutes – you will get a lot of foam and black water.
  3. Dump nuts into colander and rinse.
  4. The skins will rub right off.
  5. Bake the hazelnuts at 350º for 15 minutes.
  6. Chop for this recipe.

Vegetable Fries ~~ 4

Eggplant Fries

  1. Skin and cut spears
  2. Brush with EVOO
  3. Dredge in 1/2 C flour
  4. Dredge in 1 C flour, 1/4 C beer, 1 tsp cayenne pepper, and 1 tsp cornstarch
  5. Fry in peanut oil heated to 365º till golden brown
  6. Serve with tzatziki sauce

Tzatziki Sauce

  • 1/2 C yogurt, 1 tsp sesame oil, 3 leaves ginger, salt, thyme, oregano and marjoram to taste
Sweet Potato Fries
Zucchini Panko Fries
Parsnip Fries

Pintxos

Pintxos (pronounced PEEN chose) have been around in Spain for many years.  They are now catching on in the United States.  It is essentially a TAPAS which is a more common word.

A TAPAS literally translates as a small top.  Drinks were served with (bartender’s choice) of a tapas plate on top, so that it would keep the bugs and flies out.  Not quite as necessary as before there was indoor plumbing, tapas is still served in most restaurants and bars in Spain.  The picture link below shows lots of food on most of the plates.  A tapas in Spain would be a few pieces on the plate, and would run you a dollar or two.

tapas

  • Aceituna is the Spanish word for olive.  These are frequently served on the side, just as we are served taco chips at a Mexican restaurant.
  • Boquerones are anchovies.  They are usually lightly picked or in a heavy cream.  They will frequently be served on top of biscotti or a cracker.
  • La Gilda is the toothpick on which the aceitunas and boquerones are skewered along with a guindilla pepper.
  • Montaditos are small sandwiches served with shaved slices of Iberican Ham, which is a staple in most Spanish kitchens.
  • Morcilla is Spanish pork blood sausage.  No my favorite, but at least I can say I’ve tried it.
  • Pulpo IS one of my favorites.  Octopus – grilled and served in a small pool of guajillo tomato and pepper salsa

A collection of photos of different types of tapas would fill my entire computer, so here is a GOOGLE LINK that will allow you to view hundreds of different tapas. If you have an even mildly active imagination, you will see plenty of these that you could create for your next party or potluck.

Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes

  1.  Wash large, nicely symmetrical, yams
  2. Poke a zillion holes in each with a fork
  3. Bake at 400 degrees for 1 hour
  4. Cut in half and set aside to cool
  5. Let cool until they can be handled without being burnt
  6. Scoop out meat of potato, leaving skin boat intact
  7. Mash and mix with 1 TBL butter and 1 TBL cream per half of potato
  8. Spoon back into skin boats
  9. Sprinkle with cheese, salt and paprika
  10. If desired, whip up just a bit of meringue and put on top (See recipe below)
  11. Bake another 15 minutes at 350º

Meringue – Totally optional… I usually don’t do this step.

  1. Separate 2 eggs – keep yolks for other uses
  2. Beat whites until they start to come to peaks
  3. Add 1/4 tsp cream of tartar
  4. Add 1/4 C sugar
  5. Keep beating until they form stiff peaks

Twice Baked Potato

This recipe is not much more difficult than making a baked potato, but is a lot fancier and always very well received.

Bake two large potatoes just as you normally would:
( Poke them full of holes, bake at 450º and then let cool to the touch )

Cut the potato in half, and scoop out the white part making sure you don’t tear the skin
Crush and mix the white with 4 TBL butter, garlic powder and onion powder
Add in 1 TBL sour cream, 1/4 C cheddar cheese
Mix in 1/4 C chives, salt and pepper to taste and 1/2 tsp oregano

Pack all of this back into the shell of the potato skin, top with cheese and bake at 400º for 20 minutes.

Grandpa’s Cornbread

See THIS LINK FOR  LOTS MORE

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 can creamed corn
    • If you don’t have creamed corn, use 1 can kernel corn and 3 TBL butter and 3 TBL cream. 
    • If you don’t have cream, use 6 TBL butter.
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 1/4 C Gruyere cheese
  • 1/4 C Monterey Jack cheese
  • 1 small can Hatch Green Chiles
  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • 1/4 C room temperature butter (in addition to . . . )
  • 4 large eggs, slightly beaten
    • DRY INGREDIENTS
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 C potato or almond flour
  • 1 cup yellow cornmeal (fine ground)
  • 2 pieces crisped crumpled bacon
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

OPTIONS

  • Combine wet ingredients
  • Combine dry ingredients separately
  • Substitute in a bit of whole wheat flour, raw oatmeal or flax.

STEP BY STEP

  1. Grease a 9-inch square pan.
  2. Preheat oven to 400°F
  3. In two separate bowls, fold wet and dry ingredients
  4. Gradually FOLD the milk mixture into the dry ingredients stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened. – DO NOT OVERMIX
  5. For tender cornbread, do not overmix.
  6. Pour into HOT prepared cast iron 6 inch pan.
  7. Put 1 TBL butter into pan until it completely melts
  8. Fill no more than 3/4 full
  9. Bake 20 for 25 minutes at 400º or until the cornbread is lightly golden brown.
    If you like a moister interior, to for 425º for 16-20 minutes
  10. Let rest 5 minutes for a clean turn-out

A very cool way to cook this, is to preheat your cast iron skillet before pouring in the cornbread batter. Pour in the rendered bacon drippings, and bring it up to heat. At 400°, dump in your cornbread batter and continue with recipe. This will give it a very nice crispy crust.

Two Easy Dips

Suz-KyleTwo Easy Dips
Suzanne Bissette
and Kyle Unfug
from AZ Family

Really though, all jokes aside, if you live in Arizona, be sure to watch this weekday morning show. Lots of good local information plus some of my favorite recipes from chefs from around the Valley. Sorry Suzanne and Kyle for the joke. I love you two!

Suzanne

  • 4 Green scallions – chopped on the bias in small pieces
  • 1 C Mayo (see Grandpa’s recipe) or Miracle Whip,
  • 1 C Shredded cheddar cheese,
  • 3 pieces Crumbled crisp bacon

Opt: jalapeños

Kyle

  • 2 sticks Cream cheese smear on bottom of pan
  • 1-2 cups pesto sauce
  • Heat oven to broil till the merest bubble
  • Serve with crackers or pita or French bread

 

Six Bean Salad

Robert’s Six Bean Salad

We would usually call this Three Bean Salad, but this recipe has a few extra ingredients.

INGREDIENTS

  1. 1 can Black beans, drained
  2. 1 can (short cut) green beans, drained
  3. 1 can Kidney beans, drained
  4. 1 can Pinto beans, drained
  5. 1 can white beans, drained
  6. 1 can Garbanzo beans, drained
  7. 1/4 red onion, sliced as thinly as possible
  8. 1 red bell pepper, sliced thin
  9. 3 cloves of garlic, minced small
  10. 1 packet of crushed red pepper
  11. Juice and zest from one lemon
  12. 1 tsp dried paprika
  13. 1 TBL Dijon mustard
  14. 1 tsp dried cumin
  15. 1 bunch of cilantro, minced
  16. 2 tsp fresh oregano, minced
  17. 2 TBL chives
  18. NO SALT – because you did not rinse the beans
    If you rinsed the beans, add 1/2 tsp salt
  19. 1/2 tsp black pepper
  20. 1/2 C EVOO
  21. 2 TBL Karo Syrup
  22. 1/4 C fresh lime juice
  23. 1/4 C Red wine vinegar
  24. White vinegar to top after all else combined

STEP BY STEP

  1. In a large bowl mix first fourteen ingredients (1-14)
  2. Whisk all remaining ingredients (15-24 ) together
  3. Combine GENTLY with the first bowl
  4. Transfer to a large canning jar
  5. If necessary, top off jar with white vinegar
  6. Best if allowed to meld in the refrigerator for one hour before serving
  7. Will keep up to 2 weeks

Dan’s Three Bean Salad

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 LB fresh green beans (ends trimmed)
  • 1 TBL salt (for the water)
  • 3 scallions – greens and whites – cut into 1/2 inch pieces
  • 1 TBL olive oil
  • 2 cloves garlic – minced
  • 1 tsp orange zest – plus juice
  • 1 tsp lime zest – plus juice
  • 1 TBL white wine vinegar
  • 2 tsp sesame oil
  • 15 oz canned chickpeas (garbanzo beans) – rinsed
  • 15 oz canned cannelloni beans – rinsed
  • 15 oz canned kidney beans – rinsed
  • 1 TBL toasted sesame seeds
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt

STEP BY STEP

  1. Bring large pot of water to a boil
  2. Add 1 TBL salt – do not add until boiling
  3. Add trimmed green beans and blanche for 3-4 minutes
    if you like beans crisp cook 3 minutes, cook 4 if you like soft
  4. Drain and put into cold water – let rest 5-10 minutes
  5. Drain again, and place on a towel to continue draining
  6. Meanwhile, heat oil in a large skillet to shimmering
  7. Add garlic and cook 30 seconds, then add garbanzo beans
  8. Cook 3-4 minutes
  9. Add citrus juices and stir 1 minute
  10. Remove from heat and add vinegar, sesame oil, sesame seeds and citrus zests
  11. In a large bowl, gently stir together green beans, cannelloni beans, kidney beans and scallions
  12. Toss with vinegar mixture and 1/2 tsp salt

Cranberry sauce ~~3

Chad McDonald from The Provence Restaurant located in The Westin Phoenix

2 cups cranberries in sauce pan
One cup good red merlot wine
1/2 cup honey
One or two pinches salt
One cup water

Bring to a boil
Reduce heat and simmer until the liquid starts to become syrupy . 45 minutes to an hour
At one hour, if necessary, add 1 teaspoon cornstarch mixed in 2 tablespoons of water
Heat for another five minutes until it thickens

It is ready for the plate at this time


1/4 cup simple syrup
One cup diced pears
2 cups fresh cranberries

Optional: pulse 2x in food processor

Sprinkle of salt
Sprinkle of alspice
Sprinkle of cinnamon

Heat until they start to split (about 5 minutes)
1 TBL lemon juice

French Fries / Chips

friesBefore we begin…

  • Potatoes fall into the categories of either starchy or waxy.
  • Russet and Idaho potatoes have a higher amount of starch and less moisture than waxy potatoes, so they are great for baking and frying, but don’t perform well for potato salads or casseroles
  • Waxy potatoes like Red Bliss, Fingerlings or New Potatoes have less starch and more body, so are good choices for potato salads, but NOT this recipe.
  • Yukon Gold is a good example of an all purpose potato.  It does reasonably well for either application.

Ingredients to feed 4 people

1-2 potatoes per person
1 C water and 1 tsp salt (per potato)		 Optional Condiments:
Ketchup, sour cream, ranch dressing,
Grandpa’s Jalapeño Ketchup

Step by Step

  1. Cut russet potatoes into approximately 1/3 inch thick strips
    – Just for fun you can cut them into 1/4 inch medallions instead of strips
  2. Soak in salted water overnight
  3. The next day, blanche potatoes in salted water for about sixty seconds to boil and partially cook
    – Potatoes should break apart when bent at this point, so be careful.
  4. Toss gently with oil and salt
  5. Put on a baking tray and cook at 450º for about ten minutes
  6. Flip over fries and cook another 10-15 minutes until golden brown
  7. Sprinkle with salt while oil is still very hot
  8. Some people enjoy a very light sprinkling of black pepper too

Oh, one more thing…

  • French Fries REALLY don’t come from France.  Research has shown that they really come from Belgium, where historians claim they were frying potatoes as early as the late 1600’s
  • The first record of French Fries being served in America was 1802 when Thomas Jefferson served them to guests at the White House.

Puff Pastry Savory Twists

Lay out sheet of Pepperidge Farms puff pastry

  1. Brush with butter mixture
    . Melted butter, EVOO, chopped garlic, salt, pepper
  2. Sprinkle savory mixture over top
    . Grated parmesan, rosemary and thyme
  3. You can use whatever spices you prefer
  4. Cut into 1 inch strips
  5. Twist to enclose garnish
  6. Put on baking sheet
  7. Refrigerate about 20 minutes
  8. Bake right from the fridge, at 400° for about 20 minutes
  9. Mix Parmesan and parsley
  10. Brush with butter mixture
  11. Roll in parsley mixture
  12. Serve hot

 

Cauliflower or Broccoli Rice

Use this for stuffing dolmathes, peppers, etc. – – or just as a side
High fiber, low calorie

Recipe 1

  1. Pulse cauliflower in food processor – stem and all – enough to make 2 C
  2. Saute in 2 TBL butter
  3. Serve as a side rather than rice

Recipe 2

  1. Cut cauliflower into pieces and toss with EVOO, salt and pepper
  2. Bake at 425º for 25 minutes.
  3. Pulse in food processor for rice, or mash with butter for mashed potatoes.

Recipe 3

Ingredients

  • 1 C charred corn
  • 1/2 C blanched green beans (1/4 inch pieces)
  • 1/4 C red bell pepper (1/4 inch pieces)
  • Small head of cauliflower (rough chopped)
  • OPT: 1/4 C Toasted Pine Nuts
  • 1/2 C Rustic bread crumbs (toasted in 2 TBL butter)
  • 1/4 C slivered and caramelized red onions
  • 1/4 C shredded Parmesan cheese
  • Chopped parsley
  • Dijon mustard
  • Rice wine vinegar

Step by Step

  1. Mix bread crumbs, pine nuts, Parm cheese and most of the parsley and set aside
  2. Pulse cauliflower pieces into < 1/4 inch pieces
  3. Add corn, green beans, red bell
  4. Toss with 1 TBL Dijjon mustard and 1 TBL rice vinegar
  5. Put on plate
  6. Top with bread crumb mixture
  7. Garnish with parsley or cilantro

Recipe 4

  1. Pulse peeled broccoli stem in a food processor
  2. But butter and garlic into a pan
  3. When butter is melted, add the broccoli and the zest and juice from one lemon
  4. Top with Parmesan cheese

Recipe 5

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